


Caelyx and Calleach

by SlytherinSon



Series: Balanceverse [1]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Other, non-sexual Harry/Draco
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2012-12-30
Updated: 2013-04-22
Packaged: 2017-11-22 23:13:51
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Underage
Chapters: 8
Words: 5,903
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/615446
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SlytherinSon/pseuds/SlytherinSon
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In every Generation the Balance is born. What happens when not only is the Balance born early, but both halves are broken. This is Completely AU. There are no plans at this time to make this a Draco/Harry pairing.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter, much to my dismay. I simply play with the boys (and sometimes the girls) from time to time. This is listed as Underage simply because Harry and Draco are 15 at the time this story begins.

In every generation the Balance is born. One Caelyx, the pure Light, born of hope, good faith, Life and Love. They hold the powers of Creation, of peaceful resolution, and they shine with the brilliant White Grace that calms every heart and stills every mind.

The other half of this Balance is the Calleach, the everlasting Dark, born of despair, bad faith, Death and Hatred. They bear the powers of Destruction, animosity and they disappear within the all-encompassing Black Grace that sets blood to boiling and turns minds to chaos.

Alone and Separate, both have the potential to upset the carefully balanced scales, either to stagnation in the Ordered Light or to ruin in the Chaotic Dark. Together and bound, whether as siblings, as lovers, or even as sworn enemies, the Balance is maintained. The Light and the Dark flourish, and all the shades of grey between.

In every generation they are born, however, not all of them survive. This leads to the rise of the Lords, the Unbalanced. For a Caelyx without a Calleach is just as dangerous as a Calleach without a Caelyx.


	2. Draco

Draco lay on his bed in the Slytherin dorm with his head stuffed under a pillow. He had been unable to concentrate all day and his magic had been acting strangely, starting with the botched hair grooming charm that he had been using since he was six to tame his fine platinum blonde hair and culminating in a spectacularly exploded cauldron of Boil-Cure Potion that covered the entire classroom in a foul smelling, vomit orange sludge. He had lost Slytherin nearly a hundred points for that particular fuck-up. Now, it was the middle of the night and he couldn't fall asleep amidst the snoring of his dorm mates, so Draco lay awake, pondering the reason for his magic's erratic performance when his back started to tingle.

_Oh, Salazar, please, don't let this be what I think it is._ he thought.

The tingling turned into a burning and he could barely muffle the moan of pain that threatened to escape.

_No, no, no._ he screamed inside his head, _not now, its too early, not here, not like this in a room filled with Junior Death-Eaters._

Then the skin on his back split open as a set of blindingly white wings ripped through. Not even Merlin himself could have stifled the scream that tore it's way out of Draco's throat. The room exploded into movement at his shriek.

_Shite, I am going to die._ Draco thought, his mind too fuzzy with pain to comprehend what was truly going on around him. He felt a comforting hand on his shoulder, and as blackness descended, heard a somewhat familiar voice say:

"Don't worry, my Lord. We will protect you and stand by you through everything."


	3. The Dark Court & Theo Nott

The dorm was silent except for the snoring and nocturnal mutterings of the sleeping occupants. No one stirred when the first ill-concealed groan came from the furthest bed, but when the screaming started, the boys were jolted awake in a whirlwind of confusion and bright white light.

"What the fuck?"

"Bloody hell."

"Draco!"

"What the hell is that?"

Shouts and confusion reigned as the four Slytherin boys struggled to figure out what was happening. Blaise was the first to understand.

"He is changing! His Inheritance is starting!"

The shouting stopped abruptly as the boys turned to see the three-tiered wings unfurl themselves in a spray of blood.

"It's six months too soon." Greg whispered.

"What is he?" Theo asked.

The other three boys looked at each other.

"Caelyx." They said.

"Caelyx," Theo gasped in awe, "you know what we have to do, right?"

Blaise, Greg and Vince held their breaths in trepidation and prayed that the next words out of Theo's mouth were not what they feared.

"We have to tell our parents, we have to tell the Dark Lord! Can you imagine the honor He would give us if we brought him a newborn Caelyx? He will see that we are loyal, maybe even grant us our Marks!"

"Wrong answer, Theo." Blaise said, "Our Lord is in this room,, and we already bear his mark. We might have offered you a place with us, but you have made your position clear. I'm sorry, Theo. _Obliviate_."

Theo ducked the bright blue light that flew toward him and shot the red light of _stupify_ back. Spells flew back and forth between Blaise, Theo and Greg while Vince scrambled to shield the prone Caelyx, who was wavering in and out of consciousness.

"Don't worry, My Lord, we will protect you and stand by you through everything." Vince said. He heard Draco murmur, then felt his body relax as he slipped fully into unconsciousness. 

Greg managed to land a _Petrificus Totalis_ on Theo that dropped him like a box of hot rocks, just as Theo's last stunner tagged Greg in the chest, blowing him back over his bed to land in a heap on the other side.

Blaise _ennervated_ Greg and made sure he was alright before he stepped over to Theo and stunned and bound him. The three boys stood in shocked silence for several moments, attempting to calm their hearts and process the betrayal of their once friend. A soft whimper sounded through the room and the boys turned to watch Draco's wings slowly furling and unfurling, the individual feathers separating and twitching, flicking away bits of blood and goo, and unfortunately, causing more damage to Draco's back and shoulders than his traumatized body and magic could tolerate. Blaise pointed his wand at Draco and _stupified_ him.

"Stay with him Vince, knock him out whenever he comes around. Greg, go get Professor Snape, tell him the Caelyx is born in the Slytherin fifth year dorms, then go to Gryffindor Tower, use the password _Light's Darkness_ and give the person who answers the same message, then get Madame Pomfrey from the Hospital Wing. I'll deal with Theo." Blaise said.

Greg and Vince nodded their agreement and Vince cast a silencing spell around himself and Draco, so as not to alert the rest of Slytherin of the chaos in the fifth year dorm. Greg opened the door and went to leave when he was stopped by Pansy Parkinson and Daphne Greengrass who had obviously been trying to get in for quite a while.

"What is going on? The whole House is awake and we had to block the hall to anyone not of the Courts." Pansy said.

"Pansy, go with Greg, he will explain. Daphne, in here with us." Blaise said.

Pansy looked like she was about to argue and Blaise broke in. "Don't argue, just go." He said.

Pansy glared at him, but left; following Greg through the barrier and out into the school proper. Daphne entered the room slowly as if trying to avoid Blaise's wrath, gasping when she saw the shattered Malfoy heir on the bed.

"It's too soon, Blaise. Why has it happened now?" she whispered.

"We don't know, Daphne, but right now I need you to be his Darkness until his Calleach is with him. Can you do it?" Blaise asked.

"Yes, my Lord Captain, though, I'm not entirely sure how much good I'll do." Daphne said, moving over to touch Draco where his wings met his body.

Draco stirred at the contact, but did not wake and Daphne stroked up the newly erupted wings, stilling them and stabilizing them so they would not cause any more damage to Draco's already torn muscles. Blowing out a sigh of relief, Blaise watched the darkest person he knew hold his friend together. Even the little bit of relief Daphne gave him was better than none. He only hoped it would be enough for Greg and Pansy to gather the rest of the Courts and the Calleach.


	4. Informing Professor Snape

Greg and Pansy made their way down the corridor towards Severus Snape's quarters. They moved swiftly enough to convey urgency, but they did not run. Even in these troubled circumstances, Greg and Pansy were Slytherins, and even in the wee hours of the morning, safe and in the privacy of their own dungeons, Slytherins did not show panic, did not run frantic down the halls, and most certainly did not act with anything other than dignity within any area of the school outside their own Common Room.

They walked silently down the hall. Pansy, outwardly the picture of a calm and collected woman of Salazar's House, could not control the slight tremble of her body in response to the worry about her oldest friend. Greg reached out and grasped her hand, slowing his longer strides to hers. She squeezed his hand tightly, offering a small smile of thanks as he gently led her down to their Head of House's quarters. Pansy was anxious to find out what happened, but she knew that if Blaise had sent them, then he had sent a message that explained the whole fiasco in a couple of simple sentences. She was proven right when a ruffled and rather irate Snape answered the door.

"Have you any idea what time it is? What could you two possibly want at this unholy hour of the morning?" Snape growled.

Greg looked directly at the scowling professor and spoke the words Blaise had told him. "I'm sorry, Professor, but we have a problem in the House. The Caelyx is born in the Slytherin fifth year dorms."

Snape stared at them for a moment. "Bollox!" he exclaimed. "You know the protocol?"

"Yes, Professor." Greg said, "Blaise has given the order."

"Well, there is no question about who the Captain of Draco's Guard is." Snape muttered to himself and sighed. "Continue with your mission, I will be in the dormitory." His robes billowed around him as he turned back into his quarters to attire himself in something more appropriate to gallivanting the halls at ungodly hours. 

The two Slytherins stared at the door as it slammed in their faces. Greg and Pansy blinked at the door for a moment, then Greg shook his head.

"I really wish I knew how he does that." Greg said.

"You and me both. It's impressive every time." Pansy said.

"Come on, Pans, we have other stops to make." Greg said, taking Pansy's hand again and leading her toward the Gryffindor Tower.


	5. Snape's Warning

Severus leaned against the closed door to his quarters, breathing heavily. The worst had happened. Some outside force had triggered Draco's Inheritance early. The question was, what happened, and more pressingly what would this mean for the network of spies both Dark and Light whose escape plans and sabotage set-ups depended on the first of the pair coming to maturity in June.

Severus sighed and pushed himself away from the door. There was nothing he could do now but send the signal and hope everyone survived. He stalked over to the fireplace and tossed a handful of glittering silver powder into the flames, calling out an address.

"Get here now. We have a problem." Severus said to the face that appeared in the flames. "Bring everything you need to run."

When the head disappeared, Severus took another handful of Floo Powder and dripped several drops of deep purple liquid onto it. He flung the now purple powder into the flames. The potion coating the powder would make every fire on the secure network flare purple, the signal that Draco had reached his Maturity.

As the purple flames died, Severus heard the _crack_ of a house-elf Apparating into his quarters. The half a dozen boxes and trunks that appeared in his living room he quite expected. What shocked him was the blood-streaked, platinum blond hair of a kneeling Lucius Malfoy who was clinging tightly to a rather fierce looking house-elf.

The house-elf raised her head and looked around. When her eyes landed on Severus, she started babbling.

"Master Severus! Mistress 'Cissa saw the flare! She cursed our Master Lucius, Abby tried to catch him, but he hit the wall. The best Abby could do was protect him. Abby is a bad, bad elf! she attacked her Mistress! Help him, Master Severus, please!"

"Abby!" Severus barked, startling the house-elf into silence, "You are a good elf. You protected your Master from a very bad Mistress, one who will, soon, no longer be a Malfoy at all. Now, tell me, is Lucius hurt badly? And for Merlin's sake, stop calling me Master."

"Master Lucius is unconscious. Abby believes he passed out on the trip here." The house-elf said.

Severus bowed his head and pinched the bridge of his nose between his thumb and forefinger. He was jumping from one crisis to another with no time to solve one before another came along. _Centralize_ , he thought. If he could bring all the crises together then he could solve them more easily.

"Take Lucius to the Hospital Wing. Put him in a private room, then come and find me."

"Yes, Master Severus." Abby said, and popped out.

Severus pulled on the thick robe that hung next to the door and walked out. Now to deal with the newborn Caelyx that started this mess. His godson, Draco.


	6. Lily's Last Gift and Dealing With Theo

Severus billowed into the Slytherin Common Room and was stopped in his tracks by nearly three-quarters of his House packed into the corridor leading the the Fifth Year boys dorms.

"Back to bed, all of you!" Severus shouted, "I will not write excuses for missing class tomorrow because you were more interested in gossip than school work!"

The Slytherin's fled before the wrath of their head of house. Only the Seventh Year students still working on their N.E.W.T. level homework remained in the Common Room. At Severus' glare they quickly turned back to their books, quills scribbling fiercely as they rushed to complete their assignments.

With one last glare around the Common Room to make sure there were no little snakes still lingering, he turned down the Fifth Year corridor. The barrier separating the Courts from the rest of the population flowed over him like water. Severus felt the magic judge and acknowledge him as not only a member of the Dark Court, but as a Calleach in his own right, Unbalanced though he is. The power parted before him and allowed him to pass the threshold between the Common Room and the Fifth Year dorms. As soon as he entered the corridor, another wave of power slammed into him. It staggered Severus for a moment, so like his lost Lily, but not. This power was stronger, more masculine; a warrior rather than a healer. He let Draco's Grace wash over and through him, searching for that piece of himself left loose and broken when Lily died. He had often wondered why he had not died with Lily, as most bound pairs were wont to do, but as Draco's newborn Caelyx Grace washed through him and fitted the broken part of him back into place, he knew why he lived.

Draco was his charge now, and through Draco; Harry. In that moment Severus ceased to see Harry as James Potter's son, but saw him as he truly was; Lily Evans' son, Calleach, Last of the Harenhalls and the Potters; and it was now Severus' job to keep both the Caelyx and his Calleach safe. It was Lily's last gift and her last order to him, and as the Peace of the Caelyx filled him, he heard Lily's voice again.

"Love them as you loved me, Sev, and they will bring you home." He heard and felt her gentle touch against his face, "They have the experience and the temperament, but not the control or understanding. You must teach them how to be a true partnership. Harry needs control and compassion and Draco needs to know what it is to be loved and how to turn destruction and fear and hatred into healing, peace and love. They are both so broken, Sev and you are the only one uncorrupted enough to teach them. They are yours now and you must be Calleach and Caelyx both for them. I love you, Sev. I'll see you on the other side."

Lily's voice and touch faded and Severus entered the dormitory. The first thing he noticed was the blood lightly spattered over the room and its occupants, so different from the blood pattern of his own birth seventeen years ago. _Then again_ , he thought to himself, _I don't have feathers._ Calleach wings were more akin to bats of thestrals; thin membranes suspended between fragile bones, giving a fully transformed Calleach the appearance of the creatures the followers of the White Christ called _demons_. Then came the sight of his golden godson, unconscious, face strained with pain, yet still glowing with the White Grace that was so familiar and so different to him. The Greengrass girl was doing the best she could to help Draco, but her Grace was like a candle flame in the inferno of Draco's Grace.

Draco's eyes opened again and rested on Severus. "Papa Sev..." he whispered.

Severus allowed his wings to emerge through cleverly concealed slits in the back of his robe and he spilled the Black Grace of the Calleach through the room. Draco sighed and slipped into the first natural sleep of the night. Draco taken care of for the moment, Severus turned his attention to the rest of the room. He had forgotten how it felt to invoke the Calleach. The power burned through him, stirring his hair in a wind created of the maelstrom of Black Grace and filling his eyes with flames, making his naturally dark eyes burn like a coal fire, both beautiful and terrible in its endlessness.

Vincent and Daphne fell to their knees, unable to stand before the power of a full grown Calleach. Blaise alone remained standing. Severus could see the struggle in Blaise's eyes as he guarded the bound, silenced and now, completely terrified Theo Nott.

"Why is Mr. Nott bound on the floor, Mr. Zabini?" Severus asked, hos voice thrumming with Grace.

"He betrayed the Balance, my Prince Severus." Blaise responded with his head lowered.

"Explain." Severus commanded.

"When our Prince Caelyx was born, Nott advised us to turn him over to the Dark Lord Voldemort and expressed the desire to be Marked into Lord Voldemort's service." Blaise said.

"Indeed." Severus said, "What were you planning on doing with Mr. Nott?"

" _Obliviate_ the events of tonight. Leave him the knowledge that the Caelyx is born, but unable to communicate the fact." Blaise said.

Severus raised his eyebrows at the vicious but appropriate punishment Blaise suggested for his wayward dorm mate.

"Very creative, Mr. Zabini, proceed." Severus said. Blaise hesitated and looked at Severus. "Is there a problem?"

"I don't know how to fine tune the spell and I really don't want to scramble Theo's brain." Blaise said.

"Very well, pay attention Mr. Zabini. To target specific memories, use the incantation _Obliviate Memoria_ , then keywords to designate the event; in this case, Draco's birth as the Caelyx." Severus explained, flicking his wand into his hand, " _Obliviate Memoria Noctrum Nativity Caelyxa Draconis._ "

Theo's eyes glazed as the spell searched out and locked away the memories of Draco's transformation. Severus watched the spell work its way through Theo's mind. As the spell wound to its conclusion, Severus leaned down and whispered into his ear.

"Know this, Theodore Nott, the Caelyx is born and behind him comes his Calleach. The Balance will be restored and both the Lord of Light and your Dark Lord will fall. Unfortunately for you, you will not be able to warn anyone." Severus could see the fear in Theo's eyes as the spell ended and his orders took root in Theo's scrambled mind.

" _Stupify_." Severus said, pointing his wand at Theo, "Put him back in his bed and let him sleep it off. If he continues to be a problem we will take more drastic measures."

"Um, My Prince Severus, the Black Grace is a bit oppressive. If you could take our Caelyx to the Hospital Wing, we will deal with Theo and join you there." Blaise said.

Severus looked startled, as if he did not realize he was still spilling Grace through out the room. He made his way to Draco and touched his godson's shoulder, spilling the excess Grace from the room into the prone Caelyx. The oppressive power of Severus' Grace lifted, Vince and Blaise hauled the insensate Theo up off the floor and dumped him unceremoniously onto his bed. Daphne rose up and looked over the side of the bed.

"Why isn't he healing?" she asked, looking at Draco's wounds, "I thought the presence of a Calleach was supposed to heal the birth trauma and any other non-immediately lethal wounds."

"That would be true if i were _his_ Calleach, the one whose Grace resonates exactly with his. However, I am not his Calleach. The most I can do for him is relieve some of the pain and let him sleep until we can bring him and Potter together." Severus explained. 

"Where is Potter?" Vince asked, "Shouldn't he have come running when he felt Draco start to change?"

Severus realized that Vince was right, which came as quite a shock as Vincent Crabbe was _not_ the brightest potion in the cupboard. He absentmindedly stroked Draco's hair and another thought occurred to him.

"Mister Goyle and Miss Parkinson should have been back by now, bearing with them if not Mr. Potter, then some member of the Bright Court. Unless..." Severus' hand stilled on Draco's head, his eyes widening as his mind went to the inevitable and devastating conclusion.

"Abby!" Severus shouted, "Take Draco, Mr. Crabbe and Ms. Greengrass to the Hospital Wing. Mr. Zabini, come with me."


	7. Finding the Bright Court

Severus and Blaise barreled through the halls of Hogwarts, uncaring of the stares of the portraits and the damage they were doing to the calm and collected reputation of Slytherin House.

"Professor, what is going on?" Blaise panted.

"What if it wasn't Draco who was the primary target of whatever triggered the transformation? What if the intended target was Potter? If Draco's birth was that violent, imagine the birth of an enraged or traumatized Calleach." Severus replied.

Blaise's eyes widened. "Shite, he will decimate the Bright Court. Even without the Black Grace riding him, he is incredibly powerful."

"Indeed." Severus replied and the two of them hit the Grand Staircase at a dead run. Whatever the scene in Gryffindor Tower, it must have been bad for Hogwarts herself to conspire to send them on the most direct route to the Tower.

When they arrived at the seventh floor landing, stumbling and panting, they found Greg and Pansy in crumpled heaps in front of a hysterical Fat Lady. Severus knelt next to his Slytherins, checking for the large pulse in the neck. Finding them strong and steady, he _Ennervated_ them. Leaving Greg to help Pansy off the floor, he turned to the Fat Lady.

"Light's Darkness." Severus practically growled. The password seemed to throw the Fat Lady into even worse hysterics.

"I cannot, Professor! There is no one of the Bright Court left to come!" The Fat Lady said through her sobs.

_Merlin's saggy left nut_ , Severus thought to him self. Aloud he said "Master Override: Calleach Call."

The portrait hole swung open revealing a scene that could rival any horror movie. Blood was spattered over every exposed surface, including what looked like the majority of Gryffindor House; their bodies strewn about like so many bowling pins, looking for all the world like they had been attempting a mass exodus from the Tower. The youngest children were closest to the portrait hole; the oldest still on the stairs to the dorms.

In order to enter the Common Room proper, Severus and Blaise had to step over a body. The shock of long, bright red hair showed it to be the female Weasley twin, the first of the Bright Court they had seen. They stepped carefully through the bodies, the only sounds in the eerily silent room the softly cast spells the two used to check for life. They found nothing more harmful than cuts and bruises, what ever happened managed not to kill anyone. They found Luna Lovegood at the bottom of the staircase to the girl's dormitory, a gash in her forehead from where she had been tossed or blown down the stairs while she herded the Gryffindor girls down and out. Seamus Finnegan was in much the same condition at the bottom of the boy's staircase. Severus caught Blaise's eye; three of the Bright Court had been found. Where were the other two and, more importantly, where was Harry?

Blaise nodded toward the boy's dorms. It was the next logical step in determining what happened and the location of the missing Calleach. They found the last Weasley half way up the staircase, slumped against the Fourth Year door, a small pool of blood peeking out from behind him. Severus knelt down to find the source of the blood, this was the worst potential injury they had encountered so far. A flash of black in Ron's pale hand caught Blaise's eye.

"Severus, there is something in his hand." Blaise said softly.

Severus abandoned his search for Ron's injury to reach for his right hand. Based on the amount of blood, what ever had caused it had either already closed or wasn't bad enough to kill him anytime soon, Severus reasoned. He pried Ron's hand open revealing a crumpled black envelope, its silver wax seal imprinted with the gates to the underworld was cracked and broken.

_An official notice of death_ , Severus thought, _in these times its not uncommon, one of the elder brothers perhaps, or one of the parents, as both sets of Weasley twins were lying unconscious in various parts of the Tower._ Severus, being a private person by nature, was loathe to invade someone else's. Still, the contents of the Black Letter may shed some light on the situation. Harry was known to be close to the ginger horde and a blow to them would nearly devastate the emotionally fragile young man. Severus opened the Black Missive and scanned it. It read like any other notification that Severus had received over the years. _... regret to inform you... Extend our deepest condolences..._ but when he saw the name of the deceased, his eyes closed in despair and understanding.

Dudley Dursley was the only member of Lily's adoptive family to tread Harry as anything other than a slave, a burden or a punching bag. When Poppy Pomfrey brought charges against the Dursleys and liberated the Boy Who Lived five years ago, Harry begged for his cousin to come with him. Poppy agreed, taking them both, and even though Dudley was a Muggle, she raised them both the same and they thrived under her care, becoming more like brothers than cousins. 

A death among the Weasleys would have hurt Harry, possibly set him back months or even years in his emotional development, but _this_ death, the death of the one person who had been the only constant and solace in Harry's life before Poppy and the bridge between Harry's past and his future, _this_ would unhinge Harry to the point of insanity and beyond. It would force the Darkness within Harry to rise and awaken the sleeping Calleach.

Under normal circumstances, the Calleach would awaken with its Caelyx near by, to calm and soothe it through the final transformation and into the Awakening, but this Calleach would rise insane, angry and alone, all his thoughts bent on vengeance and destruction, much like Voldemort forty-four years earlier when his Caelyx died in a Potions accident. There was no hope for the Dark Lord without Polaris Black to balance him, but Harry could still be saved. His Caelyx was alive and well, and if Severus knew _anything_ about Draco, would be bitching up a storm when he woke.

They had to find Harry and the last member of the Bright Court; the Captain of the Calleach's Guard. Severus could only hope that they were together and that the Bright Captain had the same instinctive grasp of his duty and power that Blaise had.

Severus squeezed the Black Missive in his fist one more time, then opened his eyes and looked at Blaise, fear and determination shining in his onyx eyes.

"Dudley Dursley is dead. Come, we must find Potter and his Captain." Severus said, rising to his feet.


	8. Harry

They moved cautiously up the stairway, wands held ready, unsure of what they would encounter beyond the next door. They knew that what they would find would test the limits of their hearts and sanity. The silence was too pure and oppressive for there to be anything good lurking on the other side of it. Rounding the tower stairs to the Fifth Year dorm, they encountered a barrier much like the one Pansy and Daphne had erected in the Slytherin dorm, only this one was designed not only to keep unwanted people away, but to keep sound in, as if the caster were trying to keep from traumatizing the occupants of the Tower with the sound and power of a Vengeance born Calleach. Unlike the barrier in the Dungeon which parted like water before the Courts, this barrier moved more like chilled molasses, the magic checking and rechecking, tasting and seeing, never quite believing or satisfied that they were who they said they were until, frustrated with the lack of progress, Blaise drew a portion of Draco's Grace to him and thrust it into the barrier, overloading the anchors that held it together when the magic failed to recognize them.

When the barrier fell, sound returned swiftly to Gryffindor Tower in the form of a soul-chilling wail that broke over Blaise and Severus like a wave. As the wail receded, they heard the steady cadence of a melody being repeated over and over again. Advancing, Severus pushed the door open gently and looked in surprise at the scene in front of him. In the very center of the destroyed dormitory, Neville Longbottom lay on his side, wrapped around a keening newborn Calleach, singing a very familiar tune.

_I went down to Satan's Kitchen_  
 _For to get me food one morning_  
 _And there I got Souls, piping hot_  
 _Fresh from the spit a-turning_

_Still I sing bonny boys_  
 _Bedlam Boys are bonny_  
 _For they all go bare and they live by the air_  
 _And they want no drink nor money_

Severus snorted when he recognized the song. A child who grew up with insanity singing a newborn homicidal maniac songs about a lunatic asylum. Pretty much par for the course as far as this day was concerned, and it wasn't even dawn yet. Blaise peered into the room from behind Severus, snickering lightly. He had recognized the tune as well.

"Really, Longbottom? _Bedlam Boys_?" Blaise asked.

Neville's head popped up over Harry's shoulder, a look of absolute relief on his face. "It was the only thing that worked. Besides, I think he's too far gone to hear what I'm singing anyway. It's the rhythm that Harry is responding to."

It was then that they realized that although Neville was no longer singing, his hand still tapped out the rhythm of the song on the small of Harry's back, keeping the Calleach and Harry grounded to the here and now, rather than lost in pain and despair.

Severus started to approach the pair on the floor, but the closer he came to the prone boys, the deeper Harry buried himself in Neville's arms.

"Professor, wait. Come back toward the door. I think I know what's wrong." Blaise called.

Severus backed away from Harry and Neville and sure enough, the further away Severus moved, the more Harry uncurled from Neville.

"Mister Zabini, explain?" Severus asked.

"There is only so much Black Grace Neville can channel. With Harry being out of control, your Grace was overloading him and calling to the Calleach. I'll do what I can, but I need Draco. Go to the Hospital Wing and bring Draco _manually_ , no house-elf popping. If we bring them together suddenly, they will destroy the Tower and everyone in it. A gradual rise in White Grace should simulate the circumstances of a proper birth enough to stabilize them both." Blaise said. 

Severus nodded once, then turned and billowed out the door on his way to the Hospital Wing. It was a unique situation the boys were in, not only because of the circumstances of their births as Caelyx and Calleach, but because of the sheer amount of unbalanced pairs they would have to deal with. Severus, himself, was sane enough, but Voldemort and Dumbledore? Well, two better candidates for the Janus Thickey Ward Severus had never seen. Even Frank and Alice Longbottom seemed healthy compared to those two genocidal maniacs.

Severus marveled at how well Blaise and Neville were handling these events. He knew, of course, that the Courts matured faster than their Princes, at fifteen instead of sixteen, so that they had the better part of a year to adapt to the influx of power and learn to control it. Unfortunately, in this case, Neville had less than five months to learn all he needed and poor Blaise had even less time, his birthday being at the end of August.

He shook himself out of pondering the teenagers and turned his thoughts to the rest of the problems he had to deal with. He was headed to the Hospital Wing so he could let Poppy know what the hell was going on and get her working on Lucius and send Abby to deal with the luggage that was still cluttering up his sitting room. Then, when Lucius was healed, he could help Poppy with the casualties from Gryffindor Tower, seeing as he was a qualified Mediwizard.

Severus would have the Hogwarts House-elves evacuate Gryffindor Tower of everyone except Harry, Neville and Blaise. That way if things went sideways, there would be much less loss of life. He called for the head house-elf and started the evacuation of the Tower. With all of the tower and dungeon elves taking two students at a time, the children should be safe in the Hospital Wing long before he brought Draco and Harry together. He was still pondering the wisdom of trusting a barely fifteen year old student with multiple lives, including his own, no matter what his status in the Wizarding World, when he walked into utter chaos.

"Severus Tobias Snape!" Severus winced when he heard his full name. The infirmary dragon was riled and it was his job to put everything into perspective.

"Now, Poppy..." He began and was instantly cut off by the Mediwitch.

"Don't you 'Now, Poppy' me, Severus! I have a newborn Caelyx, his traitor father who is also your lover, most of both Courts, nearly the entire residential population of Gryffindor and a distraught house-elf in my infirmary and I have no idea why or what to do for them! Explanations had better be forthcoming Mr. Snape, or I will be testing experimental spells and curses on you until one of us dies of old age!" With that threat hanging in the air, Poppy Pomfrey crossed her arms and stared at Severus, who gulped, then wisely explained everything that had happened since Greg and Pansy had woken him.

**Author's Note:**

> This is what happens when you and your straight best friend are up at 4 am watching toonami on toon network, discussing Harry Potter, mythical creatures and the combination of the two. He will never _ever_ read this, but he enjoys telling me how the story should go. I am aware that Calleach in Irish-Gaelic means dark witch, but seeing as how Harry bears the Black Grace I thought it rather appropriate.


End file.
